Repeater for rolling-mills.



No. 726,774. PATENTED APR. 28, 1903. E. E. SLICK.

REPEATER FOR ROLLING MILLS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 7. 1902.

N0 MODEL.

INVENTO R NITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWIN E. SLICK, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

REPEATER FOR ROLLING-MILLS.

SPECTFICATION' forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 725,774, dated April28, 1903.

Application filed November 7, 1902. Serial No. 130,414. (No model.)

. To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that LEDWIN E.SLIOK, of Pitts burg, in the county ofAllegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usefulRepeater for Rolling-Mills, of which the following is a full, clear, andexact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,forming part of this specification, in -which Figure 1 is a top planview showing my improved repeater mechanism applied to two three-highstands of rolls arranged end to end, and Fig. 2 is a side elevation ofthe same.

My invention relates to repeaters for rolling-mills, and is designed toimprove such mechanism and render them applicable to the rolling ofhoop-iron, bars, or rods in long lengths.

Heretofore in the use of repeaters the metal passing from the rollsenters directly into a curved guide or repeater which directs it aroundinto another pass of the same rolls or another set of rolls arranged endto end therewith. This system involves many difficulties inproportioning the speed of the rolls so accurately that the materialwill not loop out of the repeater, since the metal generally enters oneroll before it leaves the preceding roll.

My invention greatly decreases the labor and expense of rolling longlengths of flexible metal, such as rods or bars, by rendering therepeater mechanism applicable thereto, and in my system I use a straighttrough or guide which leads back to the repeater and another similartrough or guide which leads the metal forwardly from the repeater to thenext pass in the same or an adjacent set of rolls. The

troughs are of such length that the material always leaves the one passbefore it enters the succeeding pass. A pair of pinch-rolls is employedfor forcing the metal through the repeater and into the succeeding pass,and preferably only one of these pinch-rolls is positively driven, theother being pressed against the metal passing between them to allowslipping-0f the metal relatively to these rolls. The repeater ispreferably arranged so that the metal strip is turned over, the bottomface on one pass becoming the top face on the next pass, though it maybe arranged to operate without turning the metal over in certainlocations.

In the drawings, 2 represents one stand of three-high rolls, and 3another stand in endto-end alinement therewith. A metal trough- 4 leadsfrom a lower pass of the first threelower, is positively driven-forexample, by

a belt passing around a pulley 7 on its extended shaft-while the upperroll is provided with movable bearings, which are normally presseddownwardly by springs 8. metal passing between the pinch-rolls entersthe repeater proper, 9, which preferably'consists of a bent section ofthe channel-iron, forming a concave trough, with its upper end lappingover another straight trough 10, which extends back at a slight angle toan upper pass of the second three-high set 3. The length of the twotroughs is such that the metal leaves the one pass before it enters thenext, and when in operation the hot metal strip or bar passes out withinthe first trough, thence between the pinch-rollers, thence around andwithin the repeater, and back to the next pass within the other straighttrough. After the rear end of the piece has left the first pass thepinch-rollers act to force the metal forwardly until its front endenters the next pass. The pinch-rollers are preferably provided withconnections which drive the lower roll continuously, the upper rollbeing driven merely by friction with the metal while the strip is beingfed forward and at other times by friction with the lower rolls.

The advantages of my invention result from the use of the straighttroughs in combination with the pinch-rolls and repeater, since therebyI am enabled to use a repeater upon long lengths of flexible metalstrips or rods without danger of looping out and with a-large saving ineconomyof labor. The location of the pinch-rollers at the entrance ofthe repeater is of advantage, as they aid in curving the strip'and areat adistance from the rolls which is suitable for aiding the passing outof the metal.

The

By the word repeater in my broader claims I do not intend to restrictmyself to the curved trough shown, but intend to cover in this Word anydevice for reversing the direction of movement of the strip or bar beingrolled. This Word repeater is used in my claims to designate a devicewhich curves a flexible bar or rod backwardly and directs it in thereverse direction to that at which it issues from the rolls.

The troughs may be at substantially the same level and may lead todifferent passes of the same set of rolls it three'high. The rolls mayboth be positively driven and arranged to allow the metal to slipbetween them, and many other variations may be made in the form andarrangement of the apparatus Without departing from my invention.

I claim- 1. In repeater mechanism; a set of rolls, a straight troughleading from the rolls, a repeater at the end of said trough, anotherstraight trough leading from the opposite end of the repeater, andfeed-rolls arranged to receive the metal between them and feed for-.wardly through said system at the time when the metal is entirely out ofthe rolls; substantially as described.

' 2. In repeater mechanism a rolling-mill a repeater arranged to turnthe metal over with its reverse face uppermost, straight troughs leadingfrom the mill to the repeater, said troughs being of such a length thatthe metal emerges from one pass before it enters the next, and mechanismfor positively feeding the metal forwardly through said system;substantially as described.

3. In repeater mechanism, a pair of converging troughs or straightguides leading from the rolls, said trough being of such a length thatthe metal emerges from one pass before it enters the next, a repeater attheir outer ends, a pair of pinch-rolls at the entrance to the repeater,and mechanism for driving at least one of said rollspsubstantially asdescribed.

4. In repeater mechanism, a pairof straight troughs at different levelsleading from the rolls, a curved repeater at their outer ends, thetroughs being of such length that the metal issues from one pass beforeit enters the next, a pair of pinch-rolls at the entrance to therepeater, and mechanism for driving at least one of said pinch-rolls;substantially as described.

5. In repeater mechanism, a repeater arranged to turn the metal overwith its reverse face uppermost, said repeater being of such length thatthe metal issues from the one pass before it enters the next, andmechanism separate from the mill for feeding the metal forward throughthe repeater; substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

EDWIN E. SLICK. Witnesses:

GEO. B. BLEMING, H. M. CORWIN.

